The Lenovichsta Chronicles: Book One
by Lenovi
Summary: Two shape shifters are banished to earth where they live in peace until they stumble across the autobots. Will this new alliance be the beginning of a fantastic adventure for the shape shifters, or will it be the death of them? Rating subject to change.
1. Exile

The Lenovichsta Chronicles: Book One

Part One

Chapter 1

The rising sun cuts through the mist like a blazing knife, igniting the forests and fields in a fiery red and orange blaze. The mountain side gradually brightens as the sun's rays reach it, the light creeping into cracks and crevices on the mountain's face. Eventually, the rays of light reach a large stadium-like structure at the foot of the mountain, the Stade. It was here, in this land of mayhem and mystery, that order reigned supreme. Here, the major decisions of the land were made. Though it was rarely filled to capacity, today was an exception. Nearly every shape shifter in the land was attending today's ceremony; a queen's fate was being sealed.

Suddenly, the large stone doors at the base of the Stade opened and a procession of shape shifters emerged. They wore robes of varying colours, with the Supreme Councillor in bright blue robes leading his council dressed in white robes. The procession stopped in front of a large platform at the opposite end of the Stade. On top of the platform sat a large stone desk and, like the platform, it was carved out of the same material as the Stade.

Two doors at the back of the platform opened and an elderly shape shifter in black robes marched forth, wings held tight against his back. The judge had arrived.

The judge made his way over to the desk and waved a hand as both a welcome and as a signal for the crowd to quiet. When he was satisfied that the Stade was silent enough for him to speak, he began.

"Good morning my dearest friends," he said, bowing his head and clasping his hands in front of him. "The sunrise this morning was brilliant wasn't it? A fabulous start to a day full of strife and difficult decisions, yes. For today, fellow citizens, is a day of justice and honour. A day where we right our wrongs and bring peace to those who have left us in a tragic way." The judge motioned towards the large doors the Supreme Councillor had recently emerged from. "Bring out the accused!"

The huge doors opened with an ominous creak. Several guards in armour marched out in a tight square formation. Within the square walked the accused, Tash, queen of the shape shifters.

One could tell from the way she carried herself that he was of royal blood. She walked with a certain grace that could only be achieved from years of attending parties and galas wearing all sorts of dangerous-looking footwear. But she also walked with the lithe grace of a seasoned hunter, and the rhythm of a soldier. She had a dangerous air about her, though she certainly didn't look the part. She had somewhat-long red hair that tied back from her face and petite wings that were folded against her back. Her eyes were a blue so bright, that spectators near the top tier of the Stade could see them flash in the morning sun. She also didn't look queenly in the brown prisoner garb that hung loosely from her shoulders.

The formation stopped just behind the group of councillors and the judge once again had to wave his hand to silence the catcalls coming from the spectators. Once the crowd was sufficiently silence, he turned to the accused with a look of distaste.

"We are gathered here today, dear ones, to bring justice to our fallen comrades. For here, standing before you," the judge gestured towards the prisoner. "Is the very reason why six million of our brave and beloved soldiers did not return home." He waited until the gasps from the crowd died down. "Yes, my friends, six million. Were they killed valiantly in battle? No. Were they massacred by an army of even greater strength? No. They were led into a trap, dear friends, led into a trap and left to die!"

The Stade erupted in shouts of anger and outrage, the stone tiers became a sea of waving fists and gesticulating arms. Every single shape shifter sitting in the bleachers was making its disgust known in some way or another. Well, almost every single shape shifter.

Artemis, Tash's younger brother, was seated in the only place he could find when he learned about the trial, the top tier of the Stade. He had to grip the iron railing in front of him to keep from screaming out in rage. Not at the so-called 'accused' standing at the bottom of the Stade, but at the spectators screaming at the top of their lungs in disgust. His older sister was not guilty. He was certain of that. How could someone so gentle, so kind, kill six million of her fellow soldiers? Artemis had a good idea of exactly who would be capable of doing such a thing, and of blaming it on an innocent person. His eyes narrowed as he glared at the shape shifter sitting in the luxurious box behind the platform. Harbinger, commander in chief of the Imperial Army, was garbed in red robes and was wearing a devious smile. He was the only shape shifter, besides Artemis, who wasn't screaming and flailing about. He just sat in his cushioned seat and watched the trial with a satisfied expression.

The judge waited for the screaming to die down somewhat before he waved his hands for silence once more. The Stade grew quiet as the judge turned his angry gaze to the accused shape shifter standing before him.

"See here, fellow citizens, how our once strong and beloved queen stands proudly before us. She has brutally killed six million of our loved ones, six million which will never come home, and she comes here expecting mercy. My only question to you, my friends, is this: can we find it in our hearts to give her mercy for what she's done, does she deserve mercy?!"

One word rang loud and clear across the Stade. No. Once again. Artemis had to resist the urge to run down to the platform and hit the judge over the head with a heavy rock. How are they so naive? He thought. Can they not see the truth past their own pain?

Standing upon the floor of the Stade, Tash raised her head. She would accept whatever punishment was handed to her proudly and gracefully, for she was innocent, and she was still a queen and would remain one until her death. 'Which, knowing my luck, is exactly what I'll be given,' she thought.

The judge motioned for the Supreme Councillor to step forward. "Has the council reached a verdict?"

The Supreme Councillor adjusted his spectacles and cleared his throat. "We-we have, your honour."

The judge nodded expectantly. "Well...can the court hear it? Now?" He said when the Supreme Councillor did nothing.

"I-oh yes, yes. Just let me-" The Supreme Councillor began fiddling with an envelope, much to Tash's disdain. Oh great, she thought sarcastically. Trust them to choose a councillor who can't even get a damn envelope open when I just want to get this sorry excuse for a trial over with. Though she didn't quite know who the 'them' were, she was still angry.

Finally, after several minutes of struggling and sustaining quite a few paper cuts, the Supreme Councillor finally opened the envelope and produced a folded sheet of parchment. After readjusting his spectacles, he read out the councils' decision.

"'We, the council, find the accused, her majesty, Tash, guilty of murder in the first degree for the deaths of six million soldiers.'"

All around the Stade shape shifters erupted in cheer. Family members hugged one another, tears of joy spilling from their eyes. They were all convinced their suffering was over, but someone's suffering had just begun. Artemis gripped the rail in front of him as tears of anger and pain rolled down his face. First degree murder...for six million deaths, he thought. She'll probably get the death penalty and if she doesn't...I'll probably never see her again

"Silence, please. Silence!" the judge yelled, flaring his wings briefly. When the spectators quieted he motioned towards the Supreme Councillor. "Please, do continue." the judge said, an evil smile growing across his face.

The Supreme councillor once again cleared his throat and began reading from the paper once more. "As punishment for her heinous crime, we, the council, sentence her to banishment to a planet of the judge's choosing. " Amid gasps and angry mutters the judge leaped off the platform and ripped the paper out of the Supreme Councillor's grasp. After reading and rereading it several times, the judge stared at the Supreme Councillor.

"You're sure now?" He said, with a look of bewilderment upon his face. "Because you can change your mind and go with the death penalty. I mean, we're all set, even got the guillotine all ready...y'know...everything's in order..." The judge trailed off when he saw the look on the Supreme Councillor's face. It was obvious that the man wasn't going to budge.

"The council is sticking to its decision, your honour." The Supreme Councillor said, taking the paper back from the judge. "Unless, of course, you think it is not adequate. Then the council can return to the task of deliberating." The judge winced at the thought of having to postpone the trial. The spectators would not be pleased, to say the least.

"No no. It-it's fine. It'll do." The judge said, returning to his desk on the platform. He sat down heavily in the chair behind the desk and motioned impatiently to a shape shifter standing off to the side of the platform. "Bring out The Map!"

The shape shifter scurried off and returned a moment later with a large, old-looking map clenched in his shaking hands. The Map was a large conglomeration of other worlds and planets that accused prisoners could easily be sent to. The judge snatched The Map away from his frightened assistant, spread The Map upon his large desk, and closed his eyes. He waved a hand over The Map and, after a few moments, pointed at a random spot on The Map. After wiping away a smudge on The Map the judge spoke.

"The Map has spoken! The accused, Tash, will be exiled to...Earth!"

There were sounds of anger and disgust from the spectators. Earth was seen as a popular vacation destination by many shape shifters. It had forests and mountains like their home world, along with a variety of unusual creatures, and wasn't considered a suitable place for mass murderers to be exiled to. Artemis, however, was rather satisfied. He could visit his sister on a regular basis and his trips to earth would not be considered too suspicious.

The now very annoyed judge waved his hands for silence once again and continued speaking.

"You all know the rules! The Map cannot be questioned! The council will begin the preparations for the accused to be-"

He was interrupted when one of his many assistants barged through the doors at the back of the platform and ran over to him. Artemis watched the judge's eyes widen as the assistant whispered something into the man's ear.

"Are-are you absolutely certain?" Artemis heard the judge sputter. By now every shape shifter in the Stade was listening intently, ears straining to pick up the smallest noise. "This...this changes everything..." The assistant answered.

Tash watched the judge with a mixture of apprehension and excitement. Perhaps the council had finally come to their senses, perhaps a witness had come forth and had finally proved to the court what she knew all along: that she was innocent. Or, and she certainly hoped that this wasn't the case, perhaps the council had decided on a far greater punishment, and the freshly cleaned guillotine will taste more blood.

She concentrated on the conversation still taking place on the platform, ears straining to catch the words that were flowing in a rush from the assistant's mouth, until, finally, she heard the three words that she'd been hoping to hear.

"...She is innocent." The assistant whispered anxiously. Tash couldn't help the smile that stretched across her face.

Leaning against the railing at the top tier of the Stade, Artemis saw the smile upon his sister's face and nearly cried out with pure joy. She wouldn't be smiling like that if she was still considered a murder.

But then he saw the smile slip off her face, and saw the judge angrily push away his assistant.

"This changes nothing!" The judge roared and turned to face the crowd. "I apologize for that interruption, my fellow citizens. Now...back to business. As soon as the council makes the necessary preparations and sends the accused on their way-"

"NO!"

Artemis flung himself off the top tier of the Stade and flew down to the platform. He made a lunge for the judge and had to be held back by several guards. The judge backed away and glared at the young shape shifter.

"What is this meaning of this?" He demanded. "Have you lost your mind?"

"She's innocent! You know it! Your assistant said something to you and you know she's innocent!" Artemis growled. "What did he say?" When the judge ignored him Artemis nearly roared in anger. "What did he say?!"

"Artemis, please." Tash begged. "Don't make this any harder than it already is."

"If you continue with this behaviour, young man," The judge snarled. "You may find yourself in the same position as your sister."

Artemis narrowed his eyes, but remained quiet. The judge turned his attention back to Tash. "The council has made its decision. From this moment on you are no longer a citizen, thus you are an outcast. Once you leave here you may never return." he leaned in close to her. "You can expect to be greeted with your death should you choose to come back." He motioned to the guards restraining Artemis. "He can go with her. The people do not need one as radical and unruly. He would only cause problems." With that the judge bowed to the now cheering Stade, and exited the platform via the large doors at the back, leaving the two condemned shape shifters to their thoughts.

oOoOoOo

"Keep your heads down. Do not move or struggle. Do not try to slow down or speed up. Do not attempt to run away. Do not fight back in any way, shape, or form. Doing so will result in your death. Understood?"

Tash nodded her head, with had a sack pulled over it. She could feel that her hands were tied behind her back, and because of the sack she couldn't see anything.

It wasn't a comfortable situation.

The guard who had been speaking before grunted. "Good. On to the next set of rules." She could hear the shuffling of paper. "You are to find and acquire a new form to help you blend in and survive on this planet. You should find this form as soon as possible. Failure to do so may result in death. The council will not tolerate un-concealed shifters running about. Understood?"

Tash nodded again. Their true form, a winged being resembling an angel of sorts, wouldn't last long on a rough, uninhabited planet. But there was another reason behind the shifters' need to find suitable alternate forms. Many civilizations would love to get their hands on the technology and power the shape shifters posses, and one of the main reasons the shape shifters were so successful was that very few could distinguish them from any other creature,thanks to their amazing adaptability and shape changing ability.

The guard grunted once again and Tash heard the shuffling of more paper. "Finally, you are not to return to your home world. If you do choose to return you will face death and possible torture as well. The council has granted you a new lease on life, be sure you use it wisely."

Tash nodded, too shocked to do much else. That last part wasn't part of the usual list of rules and regulations. Perhaps there were some people out there who believed she was innocent.

She didn't have very long to think about it. Someone had roughly grabbed her bound hands and was leading her forward. She felt the ground under her feet lurch and the world spinning around her as she was led through one of the many portals that linked her world with the myriad of other sentient civilizations, and then she found herself lying face down on the ground of a new world...one she had never visited before.

Earth.

"We are going to untie your hands. Do not move. Count to thirty before removing the sack covering your head. After that, I strongly suggest you choose the first creature you see as your usual form. You won't have time to pick and choose. Good luck." She listened as the sound of their footsteps faded away...and then silence filled her ears.

"10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15..." Artemis counted beside her. She felt the earth beneath her with her newly freed hands. It didn't feel very different from her world...and the air had a fresher feel.

"23, 24, 25, 26..." Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad here. Perhaps they could manage here...maybe even like it here.

"28, 29, 30!" Artemis finished. Tash sat up and removed the cloth sack covering her head and gasped.

Earth was, in every sense of the word, beautiful. The trees surrounding them were vibrant and green. She could hear birdsong in the distance. Huge behemoths of mountains framed the sky, which was a bright, lively blue. The air was so fresh and clean, she was actually reluctant to exhale and pollute it. She was so shocked by this new world that she hadn't noticed Artemis had stood up until he helped her to her feet.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she breathed.

"It's nice, I guess." Artemis shrugged, boredom evident in his deep green eyes.

Tash frowned at her younger brother, barely on Earth for a few minutes, and he was already sick of it. This was going to be a long exilement.

"Come one, we should find a-"

She jumped as an eerie singing noise filled the air. It sounded like a cross between singing, howling, and crying. The sound sent shivers down her spine and her wings automatically fluffed up to make her look more intimidating. It was probably the most haunting noise she'd ever heard, it echoed in her head long after the sound faded from the air.

"That was so cool!"

She rolled her eyes at her brother's enthusiasm. He obviously wasn't thinking clearly, perhaps the guards had dropped him on his head during the trip here. "Let's go, Artemis," she mumbled, retreating from the ridge where the sound came from. "We need to find an alternative form anyway.

"Exactly!" Artemis exclaimed, tugging her over to the ridge. "Maybe we could use whatever made that noise. Yeah! That would be a cool form if it can make that sound!"

"Artemis! This isn't-Artemis!"

But he wasn't listening to her. Instead he was scrabbling over the ridge, peering down into the gully below with interest.

"Wow..." he murmured. "Singing dogs."

"What?" Curiosity getting the better of her, Tash joined her brother on the ridge, staring down at the group of animals travelling past in the gully. They were quadrupeds and walked on paws that muffled their steps. They had long-ish snouts that were lined with teeth. They were also covered in thick fur. They didn't look like they could make the strange singing-howl they heard earlier, and she was about to say that, when one of them lifted its snout...and let loose the same bone-chilling cry they had heard before.

"Wow..." Artemis whistled. "That was so cool."

Tash nodded, watching the movement of the wolves, memorizing their graceful stride, their easy lope. They seemed to be powerful creatures, adaptable and able to endure in multiple environments. "Let's do it."

Artemis whooped, scrambling up from the ridge, helping his sister up behind him. A few minutes later, two large wolves, one red, one golden-yellow, trotted past the ridge, letting loose two howls before disappearing into the rapidly advancing night.


	2. Discovery

The Lenovichsta Chronicles: Book One

Part One

Chapter 2

4 million years later...

"Just look at this place, Tash!" Artemis took a deep breath of air as he surveyed the wide open desert in front of him. "Its so open and warm and...and perfect."

The red wolf stepped up beside her brother on the hill overlooking the desert in front of them. The flat land seemed to stretch ahead forever, framed on one side by a large, twisting canyon. A series of ridges and hills framed the other side, with a volcano scraping the sky behind them. She looked back, at the dense forest at the base of the hill. "Its nice," she nodded. "Especially the lack of humans."

Artemis nodded at that as well. The humans were the reason they had to keep moving. Their wolf forms had grown larger with the presence of abundant food and nutrients. Now they were roughly the size of modern-day Clydesdale horses, with Artemis being slightly taller than his sister. Though their new size and strength gave the two wolves a huge advantage over their prey while hunting, they were also far more noticeable. And in a world where the dominant sentient species had a habit of shooting at anything that they didn't understand, being noticeable wasn't always a good thing. Of course, if they had to, they could 'shrink' their wolf forms temporarily, but that took up a lot of energy and tired them out quickly. Moving stealthily in the forests away from any major human habitats was far more preferred.

So here they were, desperately searching for any place that wasn't crawling with the destructive humans, if only to have a somewhat safe place in which to rest for the night before they had to continue on in the morning. Artemis had pointed out that the icy poles on the south and north ends of the planet were probably mostly devoid of humans, but his sister had refused to go near them, being of the fire element.

Shape shifters (or 'shifters' for short) were rather unique in the fact that their very beings were influenced by a series of 'elements': fire, electricity, ice, forest, ground, water, light, wind, sound, and shadow. These elements often had a say in how the shifter behaved in certain situations and in which environment he or she would feel comfortable in. The stronger shifters could also manipulate their element to a degree, using it to give them extra advantages or strengths. Tash and Artemis, being Lenovichstas (the shifter 'royal family') were the strongest shifters and could quite easily use their elements at whim. Depending on their rank, other shifters could also possess that ability, but not to degree that the Lenovichstas could.

And it was because of her fire element that Natasha preferred to stay as close to the equator of the planet as possible, vehemently avoiding the colder poles of Earth as much as possible. Artemis, having an electric element, didn't really mind. So long as he was under the sky, he was fine. And there certainly was a lot of sky around here.

The red wolf gazed thoughtfully across the desert, her bright blue eyes settling somewhat nervously on the volcano to the west. She and her brother had lived on this planet for four million years, had become acquainted with the many different species that evolved in the myriad of ecosystems. But that volcano...seemed to be emitting a different presence. A new, alien one. Despite herself, she shivered slightly.

"Eh?" Artemis turned to stare inquisitively at her, ears flicking forward nervously. "What's wrong, Tash?"

She shook her head, still staring at the volcano. "That volcano...do you feel something..."

"Weird?" Artemis asked frowning. He glanced over at the cone-shaped mountain. "Yeah, I feel it too. Thought I was just being crazy though..."

"Not this time," the red wolf smiled, "but...though I like this place, no humans, no freeways, nothing, I think we should stay away from that volcano."

"But Tash..." Artemis pouted, gazing almost longingly at the volcano. "Why can't we just take a little peek? I mean, it can't hurt, not really anyway, just for...curiosity's sake?"

"You know what they say about curiosity," the red wolf huffed, climbing back down the hill towards the forest, "curiosity killed the cat."

"Ah yes, but do you know the second part?" the golden wolf smiled, following his sister. "Satisfaction brought him back."

The red wolf sighed, shaking her head. "Wherever did you come up with that?"

"Humans," Artemis shrugged, trotting along beside her. "Turns out, they're good for more than just polluting and senseless violence."

"Really? How interesting," Tash rolled her eyes. "But, I still stand by what I said. No going near the volcano-"

"But Tash," the golden-hued shifter sighed. "Just one little tiny winy peek? I mean, it is just a cone-shaped pile of ash and lava and...rocky stuff.."

"We don't know that. What if we go there and it turns out to be far more dangerous than we anticipated? Then what? It's not like anyone would be able to help us, Art. We're completely alone and if we don't keep our wits about us, we could very easily end up dead." she huffed, glaring at her younger brother. "Stay away from the volcano. We don't know what's there and I don't plan on investigating. Understood?"

Artemis sighed as his sister's military attitude. "Sir, yes sir," he grumbled, disappearing into the deep, dark forest beside the red wolf.

oOoOoOo

The golden wolf gazed up at the star-filled night sky. Earlier that day, as he and his sister slunk back to the secluded clearing in the forest, the volcano erupted violently, sending plumes of black smoke into the air, filling the sky with darkness and waves of heat. Tash had simply smiled at him, giving him that 'I told you so' look he hated so much. It wasn't like he knew the volcano was going to freaking explode right away. But still, even after the eruption, the alien presence remained. In-fact, it seemed to have intensified, if that was even possible. It was more than slightly unnerving, and Tash was even thinking of moving on. Certainly, the desert had very few humans, but she would rather take her chances with them than with this strange, potentially dangerous anomaly.

Artemis...didn't like that. They had finally found a place, a home that was as perfect as it was going to get. Plenty of places to run, chill out, or hide, if the need arose. He didn't know if they would ever come across such a place again, and frankly, he didn't want to find another place like this. He wanted this place, and no freaky weird volcano was going to make him leave. Not if he had something to say about it.

So he waited until nightfall, until his sister finally dozed off under the blanket of stars, before he set off. If Tash really didn't want him to check out the volcano, she would have made him promise not to go, right?

Despite their great strength, shifters also had many weaknesses. Certain situations could prove difficult or even fatal for them, depending on their element. But there were some things every shifter, regardless of element type, had to live by.

A shifter upholds truth and honour above most other things. Because of that, a shifter cannot break a promise or lie. Doing so would result in immense, debilitating pain until the shifter either rectifies its mistake, or is forgiven. Some theorize that this pain could even lead to death, though there are no recorded records of this occurring, thankfully.

Needless to say, had he promised not to investigate the volcano, Artemis wouldn't even think about going near the volatile mountain. But since he didn't...surely a little visit wouldn't hurt.

The golden wolf trotted merrily through the trees, skipping alongside the many trails that crossed through the forest. One of the things he loved to do was explore, and he was happiest discovering new places and people. At the moment, Artemis was practically in heaven.

Although any time away from his surly, depressed sister was heavenly.

He peered over a ridge, gazing in interest at the volcano, nestled almost comfortably in a low valley surrounded by trees. He hummed thoughtfully as he noticed a soft glow of light emanating from the base of the volcano. Slowly, carefully, he crept towards it.

oOoOoOo

Meanwhile, in a small clearing bordered by thick shrubs and trees, a red wolf was just beginning to stir. Tash groggily raised her head, blinking slowly and frowning when she couldn't locate her brother. He was usually close by...

Standing up, she glanced around the clearing, searching for any sign of Artemis.

He wasn't there.

It didn't take her very long to realize where he had probably gone. Cursing angrily, she sprinted off towards the volcano, frowning deeper as she followed his scent trail directly towards the looming behemoth of stone.

oOoOoOo

It was a spaceship.

The glow of light was coming from the huge entrance of a gargantuan spaceship. He could only see the rear-thrusters and a small portion of the ship's rear-end, the rest of it was embedded deep within the volcano.

Artemis crept closer to the volcano, ears twitching about nervously. He was still quite a ways away, staring down at the alien craft from a ledge protruding from a nearby mountain, but he still preferred to be careful.

It's not everyday you see a spaceship crashed into a volcano.

The golden wolf tensed and retreated into the shadows of the mountain side as the sounds of two approaching vehicles reached his ears. Humans? Here?

He frowned as two cars approached the volcano. They both appeared to be of the same make (Datsun, if he wasn't mistaken), and one of them even looked like it was a police car. That was...reasonable. Humans were known to run to their local law enforcement whenever anything that disturbed them took place. Some human had probably saw the spacecraft earlier and decided to contact the police. The wolf grinned as the two vehicles approached the ship. Discovering a strange, alien spacecraft had made the shifter's night, throw in a couple of hilarious human reactions and Artemis was practically overflowing in happiness. But that happiness quickly turned to confusion as the two cars stopped just outside the ship and the shifter waited patiently for the humans to exit them, only to realize...

There was no one driving the cars.

oOoOoOo

The only sound that filled the night air was the muffled sound of footfalls as a lone red wolf galloped through the underbrush. Tash was now growling lowly as she followed her brother's trail. When was he actually going to listen to her? When he gets killed by his own foolishness?

She leaped over a thick bush and found herself on an old, dirt road which wound its way up a mountain side towards the looming volcano. Huffing loudly, she started up the trail, ears pricked for any sign of her brother or humans...or aliens.

The last thing she wanted right now was to be surprised.

She frowned angrily at the two human vehicles parked outside of the volcano, which actually seemed to be glowing softly near its base. Thinking the glow was probably coming from the cars' headlights, she followed her brother's trail deeper into the forest and mountain side, the cars and volcano disappeared from sight.

oOoOoOo

The golden wolf gaped, slack-jawed, at the driver-less cars. Things were just getting...too weird for his tastes. First he finds a spaceship crashed in the side of a volcano, then cars, cars that seemed to drive themselves, park right outside of it. It couldn't just be a coincidence, right? Surely the cars had to have some sort of relationship with the alien craft.

This theory was strengthened further when the two cars did something that Artemis found completely and utterly amazing.

Previously, Artemis was of the opinion that only shifters could change their shape willingly. Of course, caterpillars could become butterflies and whatnot, but that was a permanent transformation, one that couldn't be reversed. But...what the cars did...it didn't look permanent and it certainly looked normal, for them at least.

The wolf's jaw nearly collided with the ground when the cars' headlights went out...and the vehicles transformed.

That was the best word for it, of course. They didn't really look like they were shifting, they simply seemed to...change. One minute they were cars and the next they were giant robots. Giant robots with wings! Although they didn't look like they could be used for flight, the robots did have wing-like extensions on their backs. Leaning forward, over the ledge to get a better look at the robots as they headed inside the ship, the wolf jerked back slightly as part of the ledge gave way. Artemis winced as chunks of rock and clay rolled down the mountainside.

The two robots froze, just inside the ship's entrance, before turning around to glance around behind them, focusing on the ledge and the mountainside. Artemis drew back further into the shadows, praying that his golden-hued fur wouldn't make him stand out that much. The black and white robot kept a hand on a holster at his hip, while the grey one just scanned the wilderness, looking almost nervous as he did so. Artemis breathed shallowly and quietly, not even daring to sigh in relief as the robots returned to their ship. That was close. Too close. If they had seen them-

"Artemis."

"Wah!"

The wolf yelped, spinning around just as his sister slid down the slope to stand beside him. She clapped a paw to his snout, silencing him.

"Shhh, keep it down," she whispered. "We don't want them to notice us."

Artemis nodded and his sister removed her paw. "No shit," he mumbled, noticing how his sister winced at the vulgar human language. "Did you see what they did?"

"They...shifted, or something," Tash whispered back, frowning slightly. "But how?...I thought we were the only ones-"

"I don't know," Artemis shook his head. "We don't really know though, do we? I mean, there could be other civilizations, other species like ours. If you think... Tash?"

But she wasn't listening. Instead her eyes were focused on the ship. Following her gaze, Artemis turned and was shocked to see the grey robot cautiously approaching the mountainside, walking alongside a different, dark green robot. This new robot didn't look like the grey one, so...were there different shapes? Different styles?

It took a few moments for the wolf to realize the two robots were speaking to each other, in perfect English nonetheless.

"...sure this is where you heard the noise, Blue?" the green robot asked, scanning the countryside with a practised eye.

"I'm sure of it," the other, younger (was that even possible?) robot answered, staring about nervously. "Prowl was convinced that it was nothing. A badger or something...but, I'm not too sure..."

The green robot knelt down to investigate something in the dirt. The two shifters glanced nervously at each other, before turning back to the robots.

"I don't think it was a badger," the green robot said back. "Too dry and rocky for them here. Looks like all it was was a piece of the ledge fell away. Nothing serious," he straightened up, turning back to the younger robot. "Don't be so uptight, Blue. You're several times larger than most of the creatures here, and I don't think any of them would attack you."

"Okay, I guess you're right Hound," the other robot shrugged, glancing back up at the mountainside. "I'm just a bit nervous still..."

Artemis started slightly when his sister nudged him slightly. He glanced over at her, questioningly.

"Let's go," she whispered, creeping quietly along the ledge. "While they're distracted."

Artemis nodded, turning to follow her. However, the ledge in front of him was narrower thanks to the piece that fell earlier. He yelped in shock as his rear-left leg swung out into thin air. He quickly recovered though, and was back on the ledge in seconds...but his yelp didn't go unnoticed by the robots...

"Look!" the grey one yelled, headlights on his chest blinking on and illuminating the mountain...and the two huge wolves standing on the narrow ledge. "I told you I saw something!"

The green robot simply stared in shock at the two wolves and Tash took the opportunity to nip at her brother's ear. Artemis glanced over, startled, just in time to see her disappear into the brush. He sprinted after her, leaping into the bushes and weeds, frantically trying to hide himself. He could dimly hear the sounds of the robots chasing after him, but before long they faded away as he and his sister retreated further and further into the forest. It wasn't long before they reached the safety of their secluded clearing, gasping and panting from fright more than fatigue.

Tash, much to Artemis chagrin, was the first to catch her breath. "What were you thinking?!" she yelled, glaring at him. "I told you to stay away from the volcano, didn't I? Didn't I?"

"Yeah," Artemis sighed, lowering his head in shame, "you did. I was just curious, Tash. I just wanted to check it out."

"Well you did," she snapped, still glaring at him. "And nearly got yourself killed in the process. Now...no more going near the volcano. Understand?"

The golden wolf frowned slightly, staring miserably at the ground. "You know, they probably wouldn't have killed us-"

"Not this time," the other wolf interrupted, "But who's to say they won't next time? Just...stay away from there, _understand_?"

Finally, the other wolf nodded in defeat. "Understood."


	3. Wounded

The Lenovichsta Chronicles: Book One

Part One

Chapter 3

"I'm telling you guys, there's something out there!" Bluestreak yelled, pointing towards the rec-room door as he paced nervously across the room. "I mean...you should've seen them! They were HUGE!"

"Probably just your imagination, Blue," Sunstreaker snorted as he sipped at his energon. "It plays tricks on you, a lot."

"But I know what I saw!" the gunner exclaimed. "Giant wolves! Huge ones! Red and yellow ones!"

"Red and yellow?" Sideswipe smiled, shaking his head. "You need to lay off the high-grade, Blue. There are no giant wolves here, especially ginat red and yellow ones."

"Hound saw them too!" Bluestreak persisted, pointing at the tracker as Hound entered the room. "Didn't you, Hound? You saw them too?"

"The 'wolves'?" Hound frowned, taking a seat at the same table the twins sat at. "I don't know if they were wolves, Bluestreak, they were a bit too big for that. But we definitely saw something out there. I checked our database on the species that evolved here, but I couldn't find anything that matched the things we saw last night."

The twins shared a confused, anxious glance before turning back to the tracker. "So...you're saying there really is something weird out there?" Sideswipe asked quietly. "You don't know what it is?"

"I'm saying that we saw something last night," Hound said, picking his words carefully. "Maybe it was a trick of the light or something, but I don't know what they were. One thing's for certain though, for something that big to stay hidden this long, they have to be pretty smart."

oOoOoOo

"How could you be so stupid?!" the red wolf sighed as she glared at her younger brother. "I told, I told you, not to go near the volcano! And what do you do? You decide to take a nice little stroll over there to 'check it out', and nearly get us both killed in the process!"

"They didn't shoot us..." Artemis mumbled, staring down at the ground. "All they did was shout at us, chase us...that sort of stuff. Nothing major."

"Nothing major," his sister repeated disgustedly. "They've seen us! If we come across them again, they'll probably shoot us."

"You don't know-"

"Think about it, Artemis," she hissed angrily. "We don't exactly look like any other speices on this planet. How many brightly coloured, giant wolves have you seen since we got here? None? Thought so. We're the only ones here, and the humans have already tried to kill us."

"But they haven't," the golden wolf argued. "Maybe they're different from the humans. Maybe we can...I dunno...maybe we can be friends!"

The other wolf gaped in shock at that, before slowly shaking her head. "That...was so stupid it doesn't even deserve a response. Now, I'm going hunting, if you want to come."

"Nah, I'm fine," Artemis sighed, picking at the ground. "You go ahead. Have fun."

"Okay, I'll bring you back a rabbit. But you'd better be here when I get back and no running off to that damn volcano. Got it?"

"Yeah yeah, I get it."

Artemis frowned as he watched his sister leave. He paced across the cleaing for a bit, before pricking his ears and sniffing the air slightly. He could hear birdsong in the distance, the chuckling sound of a shallow brook running over smooth rocks, small feet scampering across the ground as mice and other rodents darted to and frow in their hectic lives. He could smell leaves, grass, flowers, berries, seeds, and, of course, the ever-present scent of exhaust and pollution from the destructive humans and their cities. The scents, the sounds, they haven't changed much, but he just couldn't get his mind off the giant robots. They were a new sight, a strange occurence in his once simple life. They weren't from earth, that was obvious, they were probably far far from home.

Just like him.

He had never really let himself dwell on the fact that he would probably never see his home again. He had never let himself actually acknowledge the fact that he was...homesick. He missed it, missed the sights and sounds of his world, and he had a feeling the robots felt the same. Without even realizing it, he had begun to feel a certain kinship with the giant metal men. They were both lost, abandoned, forgotten. Both scrabbling for some purchase in a life turned upside-down.

The young wolf snorted and shook his head. What was he thinking? These robots were probably dangerous. Why else would they disguise themselves like human cars? And here he was, almost pitying them. He glanced up, staring out of the forest that encircled the clearing. A walk seemed absolutely glorious right now, a nice stroll to work over these thoughts running rampant in his mind. But this time, he would stay away from the volcano, and he'd be back before Tash even knew he was gone. He just needed to get away for a bit.

He trotted over to the edge of the clearing, leaped over the low bushes, and disappeared into the dense forest.

oOoOoOo

"You ready boys?" the excited hunter asked as he stepped up into his pick-up truck. He had heard about the reports of 'giant wolves' in the forest surrounding the canyon and decided he'd like to see it himself. And if he managed to bag one of them as proof, well, that would just add to the jubilation. "Let's go get us some wolves!"

The other two hunters climbed into the truck as well, buckling in before the vehicle sped off towards the free-way, towards the desert and the forest beyond. "You think we'll actually find one?" the younger hunter, Steve, asked. "I mean, if the game warden couldn't track them down, what makes you think we can?"

"Just gotta have faith," the first hunter, Frank, chuckled. "We'll find them buggers, and bring back proof of it too!"

"Just imagine the headlines," the third hunter, Bill, smiled. "We'll be famous, boys! Absolutely famous!"

As the three hunters laughed jovially, the truck turned off the smooth, paved road and onto the bumpy dirt path that led deep into a dark, forboding forest.

oOoOoOo

Tash trotted back towards the center of the forest, stepping happily alongside the old, rarely used dirt road that cut through her home. The large, plump rabbit in her jaws was the reason behind her unusually cheery mood. She felt horrible for snapping back at her brother, and had brooded over her words throughout the day. Thankfully, Artemis loved rabbit, and she was carrying a potential peace offering. Hopefully, her brother would forgive her. Hopefully.

She froze at the sound of a vehicle approaching. Quickly, she darted off the road, retreating back into the safety of the forest and ducking behind a line of thick bushes. A few minutes later, she saw a rusted pick-up truck barrel down the road, carrying three humans. Hunters, probably, judging from the rifles in the truck's bed.

As she watched the vehicle disappear from sight, the red wolf fervently hoped her brother had listened to her, and that he was still resting in the protected clearing. She waited until the sounds of the engine faded away completely before making a beeline towards the clearing and, hopefully, her brother.

oOoOoOo

Nose pressed close to the ground, Artemis followed a strange, new scent trail. It had that strong, metallic tang to it along with a bitter smell that prickled at his eyes. He had smelled something like it near the volcano, so he decided he was probably following a trail left by one of the robots. What really intrigued him was the fact that the trail wasn't heading towards the volcano. Instead, it was following the old dirt road to the free-way. With nothing better to do, he decided to follow the trail for a bit as he mulled over his thoughts. Then he would head back to the clearing and maybe talk it over with Tash-

His thoughts were interrupted as the sound of a quickly approaching vehicle filled his ears. Artemis snapped his head up, ears flicking as he followed the sound. He was so engrossed in his thoughts, in the trail, he hadn't been paying attention to anything else. If he had, he would have heard the vehicle long before now. Thinking it might be one of the robot-cars, he stayed on the road, staring towards the approaching sound.

It wasn't a robot...

The wolf froze as a truck carrying three humans barreled around a corner. He stayed frozen as the vehicle lurched to a stop mere meters away. Then the fleshy two-leggeds exited their vehicles, making loud noises and gesticulating wildy.

"Lookit the size of it!"

"I told you! I told we'd find one! Didn't I?"

"Oh man, we're gonna be RICH!"

Shaking his head slightly, Artemis slowly backed away from the humans. Sure, he had seen humans before, but only at a distance. Now, up close, they were frightening with their loud voices and waving arms. Maybe Tash was right, maybe he should have stayed at the clearing...

Sadly for him, one of the humans noticed the wolf backing away. The hunter grabbed his rifle as he yelled at his friends.

"Don't let it get away!"

"Get it! GET IT!"

"Take it down! Come on!"

Artemis wheeled around, making a lunge towards the dark safety of the forest. An extremely loud bang filled the air and Artemis stumbled slightly, grimacing as pain blossomed out from his right side. He managed to recover though, and winced as a bullet whined past his nose, narrowly missing him. He sprinted with some difficulty towards the heart of the forest, not pausing or slowing down until the sounds of the humans faded away completely. When he finally slowed and allowed himself to catch his breath, the wolf carefully inspected his right shoulder.

There was a hole in it, a small, red hole. It felt like there was something stuck in it and a steady stream of red liquid dripped from the hole.

Blood. He was bleeding.

Groaning softly, from pain, fatigue, and apprehension, Artemis continued on to the clearing. Tash would be so mad at him, he left the clearing, and look what it got him.

But Tash's wrath was really the least of his worries. He and his sister had come across plenty of dead or dying animals in their time on Earth, and quite a bit of them shared one thing in common.

A small hole. A bullet wound, caused by the humans' exploding guns.

If he didn't get help soon, would he be like those many animals? Another victim of human brutality? Left to die after some hunting trip gone wrong, with only a bullet wound to show for it? Would he eventually pass away, body becoming one with the earth, leaving a small, melted piece of metal behind?

He hoped Tash could help him, oh how he hoped she could.

oOoOoOo

"Artemis?" the red wolf called quietly as she stepped into the clearing. "Artemis, you'd better be here...Artemis!"

But he wasn't there.

She paced across the grassy ground, scowling miserably. She hoped he didn't have a run-in with the humans. She hoped he was just taking a walk, and that he'd come back soon. Knowing him, he had probably gotten himself into some form of trouble. Why hadn't she taken him with her? Why did she leave him behind? Why did she think he could actually be left alone for an hour or two without getting hurt?

"Tash?"

She spun around, staring at her brother as he stumbled into the clearing, right shoulder stained red with...

Blood.

"Artemis?" she asked, rushing over to his side, touching his wound carefully with her nose. "Artemis, what happened? Who did this?"

"I'm sorry," he mumbled sadly, "I just wanted to go for a walk...I didn't think they would actually shoot me...Can you...fix it?"

She frowned deeply. If she had a human form, she might be able to do something...but that species was just too...unique for her to acquire a proper form. She sighed, lowering her head as she came to the difficult realization that she could not help her brother.

"I can't," she said. "If I used a stick, or my claws, I might be able to pry it out, but I could also push the bullet in deeper...I don't know what to do, Artemis. I just don't." She lifted her gaze to his deep green eyes, staring sadly at him. "Why couldn't you just stay here? Why?"

"I just wanted to go for a walk..." the other wolf sighed, laying down gingerly. "Just to think and stuff..."

Tash stared down at her brother, before turning away and retrieving his rabbit from the edge of the clearing. Artemis smiled thankfully up at her, before tearing into it. Watching her brother eat, the red shifter let her own thoughts wander.

What kind of world was this? Where they couldn't so much as take a walk without facing death? The humans had become more destructive and volatile than she predicted. Their cities destroyed once beautiful forests and plains, their trash littered the oceans...Perhaps it would have been a good idea to relocate to one of the poles, away from this devastation. But that wouldn't solve their problems, the humans would follow them in their need to take over the entire planet. They would continue to run into the humans, time and time again, until eventually they were added to the humans' growing list of victims. They could not, would not survive here.

But, then again, they weren't meant to survive. They had been sent here as a punishment, they really were meant to die. It was their fate, their destiny. She only hoped they could avoid it for a little longer...

oOoOoOo

"And now, breaking news, a group of hunters apparently encountered one of the infamous 'gaint wolves' just outside the city. According to the hunters, they managed to injure the massive beast as it tried to flee. But before it could escape into the bush, they managed to capture this photo. Take a look."

Sideswipe nearly choked on his energon as the television in the rec-room showed a rather clear photograph of what appeared to be...a giant, golden-hued wolf leaping over a thick bush. Bluestreak pointed excitedly at the screen.

"See? See? I told you! I told you I saw something! That's one of the wolves! The other one is red...I wonder it went..." Bluestreak frowned, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"So...there really are giant wolves out there?" Sunstreaker asked, optic rising incredulously.

"That's what I've been trying tell you!" the gunner facepalmed, sighing angrily. "But you two didn't believe me. Now I have proof!"

"Proof of what?"

The three mechs glanced up as Hound entered the rec-room. The tracker took a seat at one of the tables before looking expectantly at the gunner.

"Proof of the wolves," Bluestreak grinned. "Apparently, one of the humans shot one of them and they were able to take a picture of it before it got away."

"What?" Hound gaped, optics blinking. "They shot one of the wolves?"

"Yeah," Sideswipe nodded. "Why, is that...bad?"

"Its not good, that's for sure," the tracker sighed, shaking his head. "When animals get shot, they don't usually survive..."

The twins shared a shocked look as Bluestreak frowned sadly. Sure the wolves were strange and...kind of frightening, but they never wanted them to get hurt, and they especially didn't want them to die.

"Just like the humans," Sunstreaker mumbled angrily. "Find something they don't understand and they decide to shoot it. Typical."

"Is there anything we can do?" the red twin asked softly. "I mean...we can't just let it die out there. Can't we help it?"

"Not right now," Hound said, standing up. "But maybe when I have some time off I'll look for it. An injured wolf is dangerous, nevermind a giant injured wolf. The sooner that thing gets help, the better. Maybe we can relocate it too, get it away from all these humans."

"Thanks, Hound," Bluestreak smiled, watching as the tracker walked out of the rec-room. The three mechs turned back to the television, groaning in unison as Jeopardy came on before Sideswipe changed the channel to Mythbusters.


	4. Factions

Neither shifter slept that night.

Tash stayed up, keeping a watch over her brother in case the hunters returned, and Artemis couldn't sleep past the pain radiating from his shoulder. Come morning, both were exhausted and not at all pleased.

How had things gone awry so quickly?

Not that their life was pleasant before the arrival of the giant robots, but it certainly wasn't this hectic. In the course of two days, they had stumbled across an alien species and Artemis had been wounded by humans, and there was nothing Tash could do about it.

This unnerved her to no end.

She used to be a soldier, a high ranking one at that, used to having things go her way, accustomed to people listening to her, following her orders. To be helpless to change their situation, to finally relinquish what little control she had, was difficult for her. To say the very least.

A movement beside her jerked the red shifter out of her thoughts. Artemis had laid his head on his paws, deep green eyes glinting with pain. His shoulder had become infected sometime during the night, and now small amounts of viscous fluid oozed slightly from the bullet hole. It was no doubt painful, but there was nothing they could do about it.

She stood up, nudging her brother gently in the side as she did so, being mindful of the wound. "Can you get up?" she asked quietly. "Or does it hurt too much?"

Artemis huffed, pulling himself gingerly to his feet, wincing as he did so. "Its stiff," he murmured, "and it stings like hell, but I'll live." The golden wolf glanced at his sister nervously. "I hope you have a plan, Tash, 'cause I definitely don't."

The other wolf shook her head, gazing sadly at the ground. "I don't know, Artemis..."

"Don't know what?" Artemis pressed, blinking at her. "Don't know if you have a plan? What? What don't you know?"

"I don't know what to do!" she finally snapped, stamping her front feet angrily. "I never expected this to happen! And even if I did, how could I have planned for this? What are we supposed to do? Huh? We can't go to the humans for help, they'll probably shoot us on sight. And I'm not going anywhere near those robots...I don't know what to do..." She sighed, kicking at the dirt. "I don't know...we need help, but from who?"

But Artemis wasn't listening, in-fact, he hadn't heard a word she said. Instead the young wolf had frozen in place, listening intently to something coming from the south, ears pricked and twitching nervously.

"Do you hear that?" he whispered.

"No. Hear what?"

And then she heard it.

A thunderous roar approaching far too quickly to be a ground-bound vehicle. As the thing approached, the roar quickly morphed into a shrill, ear-drum bursting whine as three jets roared overhead, their wings skimming the tops of the trees as the entire forest swayed.

The two wolves remained frozen in spot long after the jets had passed, noses twitching at the scent that burned inside their nostrils. That same sharp, bitter tang that accompanied the shuttle.

More robots.

"Ah hell!" Artemis growled angrily. "So they can fly too? Great, just great!"

"Stay here," Tash commanded, completely ignoring her brother's words as she galloped after the jets. "And, for the love of all things holy, DON'T MOVE!"

"Where are you going?" She continued to ignore Artemis's calls as she followed the trail of the jets. There was something about these jets that set them apart from the other transforming robots. Something different.

She skidded to a stop at the edge of the forest, looking out over the expanse of desert that spread out before her. Travelling by foot as a wolf was out of the question, but she hadn't bothered to shift in so long, would she still be able to do it?

She gazed after the jets, watching as they circled a plateau far off in the distance. From here, she wasn't able to see what, if anything, was on the plateau, even with her keen eyesight. What she needed was to get closer...

She looked up, feeling the wind tug at her fur. What she really needed was a bird's-eye view. She needed to BE a bird.

Taking a deep breath to calm her racing heart, she took a few steps back, before sprinting forward and leaping off of the ground, closing her eyes and picturing a red-tailed hawk in her mind.

For a second, nothing happened, and she feared she may have forgotten how to even shift in the first place. And then the familiar feeling of rearranging cells and molecules washed over her body. Her forelegs shrunk into her chest as wings unfurled from her back, branching off of her shoulders. Her back legs became covered in scales and her paws morphed into talons. Before long, the once huge wolf was replaced with a red-tailed hawk. The form her body wanted to take would have been much larger than its natural counter-part, and it was taking almost all of her strength to compress it into a normal size. Though this hawk was still a few times larger than a normal one, Tash didn't think it would be too noticeable. There was nothing she could do about the bright red colouring it had, though. She only hoped it wouldn't stand out if she got high enough.

Taking advantage of the many thermals of warm air rising up from the desert floor, she glided most of the way to the plateau, sharp eyesight locked on the jets circling below her. She needed to be ready to flee in a moment's notice if they saw her.

Thankfully, though, the jets didn't seem to be paying her any attention at all. As she watched they transformed and landed on the edge of the plateau, gesticulating angrily at something on the other end of the plateau. She followed their gaze, blinking as she finally noticed the three other robots facing the jet ones. One red one, one yellow one, and a black and white one, which she remembered from the volcano. Frowning thoughtfully, she wondered why the robots would be meeting so far out here.

And that's when all hell broke loose.

The jet robots fired bolts of light from the guns mounted on their forearms, forcing the ground-bound robots to take cover behind a ridge of rock or risk being injured. The black and white robot was barking orders at the red and yellow ones, though she couldn't make out what exactly he was saying. Then, as a group, they moved.

The yellow robot rolled out from behind the ridge, drawing a rifle as he did so. In the same, smooth motion he fired more bolts of light at the jet robots, catching them by surprise. While they were distracted, the black and white robot peeked out from above the ridge, tossing a small black object at the jets. The object exploded, sending fiery shards of shrapnel everywhere. Tash grimaced as metal slivers pierced the jets' wings, causing the robots to scream in pain.

But robots couldn't scream...could they?

Her thoughts were interrupted as one of the jets, the white, blue, and red one, transformed. She watched as the jet rushed the other robots, watched as the yellow one darted back behind cover as the red one stood up.

And leaped ON TOP of the jet.

As a soldier, she had witnessed some hair-brained schemes before, but nothing like that. The other ground-bound robots seemed to think the maneuver was stupid as well, sighing and shaking their heads as their red comrade flew off on top of the hapless jet. Even the other jet robots seemed shocked, having long since ceased firing.

But that reprieve didn't last long.

With an angered shout, the red robot found himself shaken off of the jet and falling to the ground. The red-tailed winced as the robot collided with the rocky ground. For a while, all she could hear was the screech of metal scraping against rock as the red warrior slid down a steep ravine only to slump limply at the bottom of a gully. And then the fighting began again in earnest.

The yellow warrior fought harder, fiercer than he did before, as though enraged by his red counterpart's fall and subsequent injuries. But, despite his new-found ferocity, he and the black and white robot were fighting a losing battle. The jets were still advancing, and it wouldn't be long before the other robots were completely overcome.

And then, just it seemed all hope was lost for the ground-bound robots, a long line of vehicles appeared on the horizon, approaching quickly in a huge cloud of dust. They were all led by a large red truck, a semi truck if she wasn't mistaken, which transformed.

She nearly fell out of the sky when _all _of the other vehicles following the truck transformed as well. Exactly how many transforming robots _were _there?

Apparently, there were enough ground-bound robots to make the jet ones nervous enough to call the retreat. The red-tailed hawk perched lightly on a cliff edge and watched the jets fly off into the wild blue yonder, before turning her attention to the robots mulling about below her. One of the robots, a boxy red and white one, was carefully inspecting the severely injured red warrior. The red robot's arms were almost completely mangled and would probably have to be removed. The boxy robot didn't seem happy about that at all, and she heard several mentions of 'slag' and 'frag', whatever that meant, but he still continued to inspect the red warrior, before pulling some supplies out of a box placed on the ground beside him.

The hawk's eyes widened slightly as she realized what those supplies were. Medical supplies. The robots could repair themselves, or at the very least have the boxy robot do it for them. Perhaps that same robot could help Artemis...

She gave herself a mental shake. There was a good chance the robot _could _help her brother, but there was also a chance that she could be putting her brother in even more danger if she brought him to the robots. But, if _she _could get a hold of those medical supplies...

She hopped carefully closer to the cliff edge, preparing to swoop down and seize that box of supplies when the boxy red and white robot stood up, picked up the box, and transformed into a white and red ambulance.

"Dammit," she breathed, feathers ruffling angrily. She only needed a few more seconds and then those medical supplies would be hers. All she could do was watch as the red warrior robot was carefully lifted into the ambulance, his blue 'eyes' flickering slightly up at the cliff she was perched upon, before he was loaded onto the vehicle and the hatch door was closed, shutting him off from view.

The hawk watched sadly as the robots transformed and drove away, taking those oh-so precious medical supplies with them. Artemis needed help, desperately. That bullet wasn't going to come out on its own, and without proper tools she couldn't extract it herself. She needed help. She needed a plan.

Above all, she needed to get back to the forest before the jet robots returned and before Artemis did something stupid and hurt himself, again.

She launched herself off the cliff edge, soaring back to the forest and the clearing that was her home. She needed a safe place to think at the moment, and she could only hope she had enough strength to get back to the clearing.

oOoOoOo

Artemis paced around the small, secluded clearing. Every step send waves of pain through his shoulder, but he just couldn't seem to sit still. It certainly didn't help that Tash was off chasing giant alien robots, who knows what kind of trouble she could have gotten herself into.

"And she calls _me _reckless," the wolf snorted, mumbling angrily to himself. "Well look who's reckless now, Ms. 'Stay here while I fly after those transforming jets and get myself killed'. Who does she think she is? If she's not back in five minutes I'll...I'll...I'll be very upset."

Fortunately for Artemis, Tash _did _come back. The golden wolf, backed away from the centre of the clearing as a large, red-tailed hawk dived down through the canopy, flaring its wings before shifting back into a red wolf. Tash hung her head, panting slightly as her ears twitched back and forth nervously, scanning for any signs of danger.

"Tash?" Artemis asked, stepping towards her cautiously. "You alright? What happened-"

"You won't believe what I've seen," the other wolf panted, eyes wildly bright with excitement. "The robots...fight each other."

"What?"

"Those jet robots? They fought with the ground-bound robots. They even injured one of them, a red one, and he had to be taken back to their ship in an ambulance, which was also a transforming robot and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," the golden wolf murmured comfortingly. "Just, slow down and tell me what happened, slowly."

"There's two factions," Tash said, frowning, "at the very least. And they have weapons that shoot bolts of light and objects that explode into tiny little pieces. And there are a lot more of them."

"How many more?" her brother asked quietly. "Ten? Twenty?"

She shook her head. "I don't know the exact amount, but I do know that its not safe here anymore. These robots can wipe each other out for all I care, but I'm not going to be caught in the middle of a war. We need to leave, Artemis, and soon."

Artemis's eyes glinted sadly as he conceded. He liked it here, it was almost perfect for them, but if they had to leave, they would. "I agree, but I don't want to go anywhere until we deal with the small issue of the bullet still lodged in my shoulder." He smirked over at his sister. "Or have you already forgotten about it in your rush to chase down those jet robots?"

"I haven't forgotten," she snapped at him, glaring angrily. "In fact, I know how we can get you some help. The robots have medical equipment, an entire box of it. If I can to it, maybe I can find some supplies or something that can help us."

Artemis blinked in shock at his sister. "You're planning on _stealing _from those robots? Are you out of your _mind? _That's suicide! What if they catch you? And how are we even supposed to get to this 'magical, cure-all box of supplies' in the first place."

"Simple. I'll wait until they're gone and then sneak into their ship. It shouldn't be too hard to find that box, I already know what it looks like, and the ship doesn't look _too _big..." she frowned, nodding her head as she worked over her plan. "It should work out, as long as there aren't any robots in the ship and I have enough time to locate the medical supplies."

"Still risky," Artemis's eyes narrowed as he considered the dangers involved. "We won't know how long the robots may be gone for, and what are the chances they'll all go at the same time? What if you're in there when they come back? They probably won't be too happy with having a giant wolf wandering around their ship."

"I'll be fine," she smiled slightly. "I've crept in and out of enemy compounds before."

"Enemy shape shifter compounds, yes, but not giant robot spaceships. You're going to need some back-up, in-case something goes wrong."

"Back-up would be lovely, especially healthy back-up that doesn't have a bullet wound," she shook her head at her brother. "You can't come, Artemis. You'll only slow me down, or get hurt worse than you are now."

"What if I just stayed away from the ship," the golden wolf pressed. "If I didn't enter it at all and just hung back? Just for moral support? I won;t get into trouble, I promise."

Tash sighed deeply, lowering her head in defeat. "We'll see how you feel in the morning. If you can still walk, you can go, but you have to keep out of sight, and don't follow me. I'll go in, get the supplies, get out. Then we come back here and get you all fixed up."

"And then what?" Artemis asked, tilting his head to one side. "Those robots aren't going to be happy that you commandeered their medical stuff, they're going to come looking for it. What if they find us?"

"They won't." his sister smiled. "Because by the time they notice the box is missing, we'll be long gone. We'll head down south, to the pole and stay there until these robots kill each other off."

"What if they don't though? What if they just continue fighting each other for years, decades even? What if they never die? I don't want to be stuck in that frozen desert forever."

"If we have to, we'll venture out onto the other continents, wait there until all this blows over. One thing's for certain though, come tomorrow we're out of here. As soon as you've been patched up enough to go anywhere, we'll leave. Leave, and never come back."

If only Tash knew how quickly her plans were going to change...


	5. Contact

The Lenovichsta Chronicles: Book One

Part One

Chapter 5

"Owwwwww."

Sideswipe squinted at the bright lights shining down on him from the Med-bay ceiling. Turning his head to one side, he tried to raise his arms to block out the too-bright rays of light, only to realize...he didn't have any arms.

"What the slag?" he stared down in shock at the stumps that used to be his arms. "Where'd they go?"

"Ratchet had to remove them." Sideswipe glanced over at his brother, Sunstreaker, reclining comfortably in a chair beside the berth. "That's what happens when you decide to wrangle with seekers, all by yourself, in the middle of nowhere."

"Oh?' Sideswipe frowned as he struggled to remember the events from the previous day, everything was a little blurry to him. "I...can't really remember..."

"Not surprising," Sunstreaker snorted. "Since you used your head as impromptu landing-gear. We were out with Prowl looking for those wolves, remember? And then the seekers followed us..."

"Ah!" Sideswipe nodded eagerly. "That sounds familiar. And then Ratchet and the others showed up-"

"Exactly."

"And then he said we had to head back to the Ark..." Sideswipe frowned thoughtfully, optics widening as he remembered something. "There was a bird...a big red bird."

"A bird?" the yellow twin quirked an optic ridge. "You saw a big red bird?"

"Yeah! It was on the cliff right above us. Looked like an eagle or something, but slimmer. And it was red, like bright red, too!"

"You're going crazy. You and Bluestreak and Hound. First these 'giant wolves' and now a big red bird, what next? Ogopogo? Moth Man? Santa Claus?"

"I'm serious!" Sideswipe protested, struggling into a sitting position on the edge of the berth. "There really is something out there, something freaky, and I don't like it at all."

"Aww, is Sideswipe scared?" Sunstreaker taunted, smirking at his armless twin. "They're just organics, Sides, they can't hurt you. And remember what Hound said? About how the creatures here are just as afraid of you as you are of them?"

"I'm not afraid," Sideswipe pouted, and tried to shrug nonchalantly. "Its just... creepy. That's all."

"What's creepy?"

Both twins glanced over at the Med-bay door as Ratchet strode in. The CMO frowned slightly at Sunstreaker, who didn't need to be in the Med-bay annoying his patients, but didn't bother saying anything. Any sort of reprimand to the twins usually fell on deaf audios.

"Sideswipe thinks he saw a big, bright red bird," Sunstreaker snorted, rolling his optics. "You _sure_ you fixed his processor, Ratchet? That was a nasty fall and he could have jolted a few important components loose."

"There's nothing wrong with his processor," the medic sighed. "If a fall could damage it, he'd be in an asylum by now. I think the stress of being dumped on such a back-water planet is playing with his perspective, messing with his imagination. Its probably the same thing that's making Bluestreak and Hound see all these weird creatures. Just give him some time to get used to the new surroundings. In the meantime, you, Sideswipe," Ratchet pointed imperiously at the red twin, "Are assigned to bed rest until we get your arms fixed up. Got it?"

"Aww, but Ratchet," Sideswipe groaned. "What am I supposed to do 'til then? Twiddle my thumbs? Oh, wait, I can't even do _that_."

"You'll just have to live with it. We're severely low on medical supplies and parts, and until we get some more you're stuck like that." the medic frowned down at the warrior. "If you hadn't decided to play Seeker Rodeo you wouldn't be in this position, now would you?"

"Yeah yeah yeah," the red Lamborghini mumbled. "I get it already. I-"

All three mechs froze and glanced up as the Ark's alarm system sounded. A few moments later, Ironhide barrelled into the Med-bay.

"Ratchet!" he yelled. "Thar's a bunch o' 'cons attackin' a hydro 'lectric dam a few miles to th' north. Poss'ble casualties, so we're gonna need ya!"

"Of course," Ratchet sighed, shaking his head as he followed Ironhide. "Stay here, Sideswipe, you need the rest. You too, Sunstreaker. Make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. You're the only one he'll listen to anyway."

"Yes sir," the yellow twin answered, smirking at his red counterpart.

A few moments later, the Med-bay was empty, except for the twins, and the Ark was just as silent.

"So, what now?" Sideswipe asked, kicking his legs against the side of the berth. "What do you wanna do?"

"I'm going to catch up on some much-needed recharge," Sunstreaker said, stretching out his tired joints. "You do what you want, just nothing stupid."

"Sounds good t'me. I'll probably go watch TV. I think The Price is Right might be on." the red twin lowered himself carefully off of the berth, heading towards the rec-room. "Have a good one, Sunny."

oOoOoOo

Two wolves peeked cautiously out of the underbrush as a long line of cars drove past on the old dirt road. They had been hunkered down a few hundred yards away from the volcano for several hours, waiting for the robots to leave the ship. After the first few hours, Tash was feeling rather foolish. There was no way they could ensure that the robots would leave as a group, or that they would even leave at all. Also, ever since Artemis had been shot, humans had been flocking to the forest, no doubt hoping for a glimpse of the 'giant wolves'. She knew that every moment they spent near the dirt road was dangerous, and the last thing she wanted was to have to repeat their stakeout the next day as well. Fortunately, it looked like they wouldn't have to.

She waited until the sounds of the retreating vehicles faded completely before making her way carefully towards the volcano, Artemis close at her heels. The wound in his shoulder had become red and inflamed, but still he managed to match her rather brisk pace. It wasn't long before they were once again on the ridge overlooking the volcano.

"You sure they're all gone?" Artemis whispered, gazing down at the volcano. "There might still be some in there."

"I think they all left," his sister nodded thoughtfully. "But I'll try to be as quick as I possibly can."

"Still," the golden-hued wolf shuffled nervously. "I don't like this, there's just too many risks involved."

"I know that."

"Y'know, you don't need to do this, Tash. We can find another way. We usually do."

That was true. For four million years they had been taking care of themselves, fending for themselves. But this was something neither of them had been prepared for, this was something they couldn't fix by themselves.

She shook her head. "No, we need those supplies, you know that."

"I know I do," Artemis smiled slightly. "But I just don't like this. So much could go wrong here, it's not even funny."

"Yeah, I don't like it either, Artemis. But we can't leave without those supplies." The red wolf stepped carefully down the ridge towards the volcano. "If I don't come back, don't come after me."

And with that, she crept towards the entrance of the ship, ears swivelling nervously as she approached the behemoth of metal. The golden wolf on the ledge whined nervously to himself as she disappeared from view.

"Good luck," he whispered.

oOoOoOo

She had never been so afraid in her entire life.

She crept carefully down the huge corridor, all senses on high alert, ready to flee at the slightest sound. Her padded feet stepped silently on floors covered in orange-toned metal as she continued further into the ship. The entire thing seemed to have been built from planks of the same, strange orange-coloured metal that the floor was comprised of and every now and then she would come across a closed door or a blank computer screen. It seemed like everything here was electronically operated, and very, very advanced compared to human technology. If she had the time, she would certainly have gawked over the masses of circuit boards and computer internals showing through gaps in the metal covering.

But she didn't have the time, in fact, she had very little time on her hands (or paws) at the moment. The robots could return at any minute, and she needed to have the box of medical supplies and be out of the ship by then.

There was only one small problem with her plan...she had no idea where the box was, or even if the ambulance-robot had taken it with him or not.

She turned down a long corridor onto a hallway lined with a series of doors. Most of them were closed, except for one. Sniffing quietly, ears pricked to detect any sound, she slowly made her way towards it.

The doorway opened into what appeared to be a living quarters of sorts. There were two berths and a small table, as well as a closed door in the back, which probably led to another room. But what really shocked her was the large, yellow robot lying down on one of the berths.

He appeared to be asleep, if that was even possible for a giant robot, with his back facing her and the door. The other berth was currently unoccupied, though it looked like another robot had been using it recently. Glancing about nervously, she stepped into the room, making her way over to the robot resting on the berth.

Tentatively, she sniffed the back of his neck lightly, shying away as the robot groaned and swatted tiredly at her head.

"Go 'way, Sides," the still sleeping robot grumbled angrily. "Go, watch your TV...or something."

She huffed quietly, frowning as she continued to back away cautiously. Sides? Who was this 'Sides'? It certainly sounded like he was referring to someone. Though she had no idea who would ever want such a ridiculous name.

The sound of something falling to the ground behind her jolted her out of her thoughts. Glancing around, the wolf winced as she saw the pool of bright red paint pooling around her feet. She had knocked down a bucket of paint, and now her paws were liberally coated in the bright liquid. Sighing quietly at her clumsiness, she carefully gave all four of her paws a good shake, trying to dislodge as much paint as possible. When she glanced back at the giant, sleeping, yellow robot, her jaw dropped. The once pristine yellow paint job was now flecked with spots of bright red paint, as was the rest of the room. Stepping carefully out of the puddle of paint, she left the room, hoping the robot wouldn't be too mad when he awoke.

Oblivious to the bright red paw prints she was leaving, the wolf continued her exploration of the ship. She encountered several more open doors but refrained from investigating them, not keen on repeating her experience in the first room. Fortunately, she didn't encounter any other robots besides the yellow one. She only hoped she would be able to locate the medical supplies quickly.

Finally, after several minutes of searching, she finally came across another open door, this one leading into a room crammed with berths and cupboards and shelves. It looked like an operating room of sorts. Glancing up above the door, she saw two plaques, one written in a strange, alien language, and the other written in English, 'Med-bay'.

Humming happily to herself, the red shifter stepped lightly through the open door, gazing around curiously for the box of medical supplies. Hopefully, the ambulance hadn't taken it with him.

A bright spot on the floor caught her eye as she stepped past a berth. She stopped, sniffing the few drips of glowing pink liquid curiously. It had the same, bitter tang that accompanied the robots wherever they went. Tentatively, she licked at one of the drops, spitting and sputtering at the burning, sour taste. Whatever that pink liquid was, it wasn't safe to eat.

Resuming her search, the wolf made her way further into the Med-bay, gazing up at a wide shelf that dominated the far corner of the room. She couldn't see what the higher shelves held, but she had a hunch that the box of medical supplies would be there. If only she could get a closer look...

Lifting herself on her hind legs, she placed her fore-legs on one of the shelf edges. She still couldn't quite see the top shelves. So, taking a deep breath, she climbed a bit higher, using the edges of the shelves like a ladder.

And then her entire world seemed to tilt as the shelf leaned dangerously forward.

oOoOoOo

"Plinko!" Sideswipe shouted happily at the large screen in the rec-room. "I love that game!"

He watched, silent with awe and suspense as the small disk tumbled down the maze of walls and ledges to the bottom of the board, getting extremely close to the $10,000 prize.

And then a loud and violent crashing sound from the Med-bay nearly scared him right off of the metal plated 'couch'.

The red, armless Autobot jumped up and crept over to the rec-room doorway, peering cautiously down the long corridor towards the Med-bay.

"Hello?" he called, optics flitting about nervously. "Anyone there? Show yourself or I'll...I'll kick you."

He paused, audio receptors straining to pickup the slightest noise. He could _hear_ something moving in the Med-bay, he just couldn't _see_ it.

Frowning slightly, optics narrowed in suspicion, Sideswipe stepped quietly into the corridor, making his way to the Med-bay and the source of the strange noises.

oOoOoOo

Though her plan didn't go entirely as expected, she wouldn't go so far as to call it useless. The shelf had toppled down, but she managed to jump clear of it and didn't sustain any serious injuries. Just as she thought, there were some medical supplies on one of the higher shelves. A box of human-style first aid kits was among the many objects that tumbled down around her, and through the plastic wrapping she could see strips of gauze, forceps, anti-septic and tweezers. Exactly what she needed for Artemis.

Once again humming happily to herself, she carefully picked up one of the first aid kits in her jaws. Now she just needed to get back to Artemis, fix him up, and then they could finally leave this accursed place. Still humming, she turned around and stepped out of the Med-bay, she glanced cautiously up the corridor before turning left into another hallway...and walked right into something.

Or perhaps _someone _was the better term.

Blinking in shock, the shifter stepped backwards slightly to get a good look at what exactly she had bumped into. It looked like a bright red car hood, but it was vertical, and facing downwards. Her gaze travelled upwards, freezing in shock as she realized what the car hood was attached to.

A robot. One of the giant, transforming robots. The fact that it was missing two arms didn't make it any less frightening. The fact that it was practically gaping at her didn't help the situation either, in fact, it only unnerved her even more.

For a few seconds, the two of them shared twin looks of shock and fright. And then the screaming started.


	6. Endeavor

"WAAAAAAAGHHHH!" the red robot fell back against the wall in shock, blue optics wide from fright.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!" the red wolf yelled, taking a few steps back from the huge metal behemoth, then she froze and stared down in shock at the small package of medical supplies that had tumbled from her mouth when she opened it to scream. The robot also stopped screaming and stared down at the package as well, optics blinking in confusion as he straightened away from the wall. The movement alerted the shifter, who glanced up at him, then back to the first aid bundle, and back to the robot.

She had a decision to make, and not very long to decide. She could take the few steps forward and snatch the bundle up, it wasn't very far away and it wouldn't take very long to pick it up. But...that would mean stepping _towards _the giant robot, the big, scary, armless robot... On the other hand, she could simply turn around now and leave, leave the supplies and, more importantly, the giant robot behind. It would be a very cowardly move, and Artemis _needed _those supplies, but if she stayed long enough to retrieve them...

Her decision was made for her when the robot took a cautious step forward, metal foot meeting metal ground with a thudding echo. The distance between him and the medical supplies had shortened dramatically, and, in the shifter's terror-stricken mind, it wasn't worth the trouble anymore. So she did the most cowardly she had ever done: she turned her back on the bundle of medical supplies, on the one thing that could save her brother, and she fled.

Every step she took was almost painful. Every time her padded paws thudded against the metal floor was another step away from that all-important bundle of bandages and gauze. She regretted her choice almost instantly, but it was too late to turn back now.

The giant robot was chasing her.

"Hey! Come back here!"

The wolf ignored him, glancing back at the bundle of supplies as she ran. Perhaps she could double back and snatch it up before she left the ship. A large metal foot slammed down behind her as the robot chased her, cutting off her thoughts and focusing all of her remaining attention on simply escaping. The wolf lunged into a sprint and skidded around a corner, claws screeching across the polished floor. Her shoulder slammed painfully into the corridor wall, but she continued on anyway, her run broken by a slight stumble as she hurried down the hall with the footsteps of the giant robot echoing behind her.

And then she realized she was lost. She had been turned around during the terrifying confrontation with the alien, and this corridor didn't look familiar to her at all. The shifter paused at the intersection between three hallways, glancing down the length of both of them as she struggled to come to a decision.

"I told you to stop!"

She growled angrily and turned down the left corridor, glancing desperately at the two lines of doors as they passed by, searching for anything that looked familiar. The corridor turned sharply to the right and her claws scrabbled for purchase as she slid around the corner. This new hall seemed to be lined with offices and conference rooms, judging from the glimpses of interiors she caught as she sprinted past. Perhaps she could use one of these office rooms to lose the robot.

Without warning, she ducked into one of the rooms to her right, and was greeted with a spacious, yet sparsely decorated office. The only pieces of furniture that adorned it were a bookshelf, a chair, and a large desk, which was covered with stacks of thin rectangles that looked like screens.

"Don't go in there!"

Startled by the sudden outburst from the robot, the shifter was once again spurred into running. However, the office only provided one real means of escape: over the desk.

She gathered herself into a ferocious leap, intending to clear the stacks of screen-like objects on the desk...but she once again fell short and ended up crashing headfirst into the stacks.

Sideswipe winced as the datapads tumbled from the desk in a wave and were strewn about the room, the majority of them cracked and broken.

"Prowl's not gonna be happy about that..." he sighed, staring down at the ruined datapads. Just as he turned his attention away from the floor of the office to look for the red wolf, the animal in question sprinted out from behind the desk and knocked him clean off of his pedes. The armless robot fell to the floor on his front with an echoing thud as the wolf skidded out of the office, claws once again scrabbling for traction on the metal floor before she disappeared down the corridor.

"Hey!" Sideswipe yelled from the floor, struggling to get back to a standing position. "Get back here! You have to clean this up!" He wiggled over to the open doorway and poked his head into the corridor in time to see the wolf disappear around a corner. "You can't just leave this mess here! ...You can't just leave **ME **here!" the autobot whined. "...Please?"

But the shifter wasn't listening to him. She was frantically trying to retrace her steps back towards the room with the medical supplies. Perhaps she could pick up another bundle of bandages and her trip into the space ship would actually be useful. Instead, she found herself in the intersection of an unfamiliar four-way.

"Which way...which way?" she muttered, glancing down each of the three corridors. None of them seemed promising or familiar, she might just end up getting more lost. Then the sounds of metal footsteps echoing down the corridor behind her announced the return of the red robot, he'd gotten himself up off the floor faster than she had anticipated. Now, she had no time to think, she was going to have to go with her gut instinct.

She launched herself down the left corridor in a flurry of scrabbling claws and flying fur, ignoring the robot that clomped along behind her. She turned right down another corridor as soon as she could, then followed it until she could make another left turn, leaving deep trenches in the floor from her claws as she spun around the corners. At this point, the incessant babbling and thudding footsteps of the robot had faded entirely and she was allowed to examine the maze of hallways and corridors more thoroughly.

Though she couldn't be completely certain, this length of corridor seemed familiar to her. Continuing on and turning left, she smiled slightly as she finally found herself in a part of the ship she recognized. If she kept heading down this hall and turned right she would find herself in the room with the medical supplies. Sprinting onward, the wolf was anxious to retrieve the medical supplies she had dropped and get back to the safety of her forest.

She neared the intersection of corridors that branched off to the medical supply room, and was about to make the turn, when the red robot emerged from a different hallway, cutting off her path.

"Gotcha!" he yelled triumphantly, looming over the shifter as she slid to a stop, claws screeching against the metal flooring. However, before she could come to a complete stop, the shifter was forced to leap over the robot's foot and bypass the right turn completely. She continued on past the robot and the turn-off, the scent of the wonderful outdoors tickling her nostrils. She ignored the angry thuds of the robot's footsteps as it followed her, instead the wolf focused on her surroundings. She had made it back to the long corridor of robots' quarters, a few more turns and she would be back outside.

"Sunny!" the robot chasing her yelled. "Sunny! Wake up! Help me catch this thing!"

Tash frowned at that, but continued on her way. She didn't have the time to figure out what a 'Sunny' was, or how it might be able to catch her. Right now the only thing she was worried about was getting out of the ship and never, ever, coming back. So the shifter ignored the incessant yelling of her pursuer, and continued on past the rows of closed doors, which seemed to glare at her as she passed.

oOoOoOo

Sunstreaker groaned as his brother's shouting drilled painfully into his tired processor. All he wanted was a few moments of peaceful recharge, was that too much to ask for? Sideswipe wasn't a sparkling anymore, he should be able to take care of himself. There was really no reason to wake him up, none at all.

Still, he sat up and stood up from his berth, rubbing at his tired optics as he made his way to the door. Sunstreaker ignored the stickiness of the floor and activated the electronic control for the door, which whooshed open, and he stepped out into the hallway, optics onlining groggily.

Then had to step quickly back into the room as something big and red and...hairy...practically flew past him. He gaped after the red...thing...as Sideswipe finally stumbled over to the door and leaned against the adjacent wall, panting heavily.

"Did you...see that...thing?" Sideswipe asked.

"Of course I saw it," Sunstreaker huffed. "What was that thing anyway?"

"I don't know. But I've been chasing it all day." the red mech turned to face his twin brother. "I found it trying to steal medical supplies and then-"

Sideswipe frowned as he studied his brother's face, and eventually broke down chuckling.

"What?" Sunstreaker glared. "What's so funny?"

"Your face," Sideswipe chortled, shaking his head with mirth, "you look like you have the humans' chicken pox!"

The yellow mech's frown deepened as he cautiously raised a finger to his face-plates, swiping it down his cheek to his jaw, and staring in shock at the red streaks that appeared on it. He turned and stared into the reflective wall of the corridor, and gasped in shock at his reflection. His face-plates were speckled with bright red spots which were smudged slightly from where his finger had smeared them.

'It's...paint," Sunstreaker blinked, gaze travelling back towards the open doorway of the room, and focusing on the bright red paw prints that criss crossed the floor of the front-liners' room. Realization dawned on the two mechs at the same time.

"It was in our room!"

oOoOoOo

Paws pounding the earth in time to her own pounding heart, Tash raced out of the ship and didn't spare a second to look back. She tried to ignore the fact that she was leaving empty-handed, and concentrate only on the fact that she was finally going home.

Hopefully, she would never have to set foot in that dreadful place ever again.

Artemis peeked around a rock as she sprinted up the dirt road that curved around a rocky outcrop. She slowed her pace as he fell into step beside her, being mindful of his wounded shoulder. If the younger wolf noticed his sister's lack of any medical supplies, he didn't mention it. Artemis only smiled reassuringly and kept pace with his sister as they ran back to the safety of their forest clearing.

"So," Artemis started tentatively as they reached the shelter of the trees. "How'd it go?"

Tash didn't answer, instead she continued on into the forest in silence.

"That bad, eh?" the younger wolf winced at his sister's silence as he followed her into the forest. "What happened anyways?"

"I left it," Tash whispered bitterly, ears flicking about. "I had everything we needed, the gauze, antiseptic, everything. And I left it all behind..."

"But...why?" Artemis frowned slightly, head tilted in confusion. "I mean, if you had it-"

"I got scared," his sister replied quietly. "There were robots there and I got frightened and...I just left it behind like a coward. I let my feelings affect my actions," she sat down in the clearing with an angry huff, eyes shining with angry tears. "If I had only-"

"Hey now," Artemis reprimanded, setting a paw on his sister's shoulder. "How are 'if's going to help? 'If only' is the song that never ends, and you shouldn't punish yourself for something that you couldn't help. I bet the bravest shape shifter in the world would have fled from those robots, you were very brave to go in that ship all by yourself. And what if those robots _had _shot at you? You'd probably be dead by now, just for some medical stuff. In all honesty, I think you chose the smartest route."

"...Artemis?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"No problem, Tash, don't worry about it. We'll figure this out still, we always do, after all."

Tash hoped her brother was right. Oh how she hoped he was right.


	7. Decision

The Ark's inhabitants were all quite serious that night. Thanks to Sideswipe, word had quickly spread that there had been an intrusion into the ship, and while animals creeping into the Ark weren't uncommon (they were situated in the middle of a forest after all), this particular case wasn't being taken lightly.

From what Optimus Prime learned, this intruder resembled a wolf but was distinctly larger than any wolf recorded by humans. That paired with the fact that said intruder also seemed to have a specific goal in mind made the whole situation rather unnerving.

"It's a Decepticon spy, I tell you!" Red Alert, the Ark's Chief of Security slammed his fist on the large conference table. "How else could something that large sneak around here so easily? It's obviously been extremely well trained in the ways of espionage!"

An impatient sigh from Prowl interrupted Red Alert's tirade. "Keep in mind that Sideswipe was the only one left to guard the Ark," the tactician calmly reminded. "Everyone else was needed to deal with the Decepticons."

"And the alarm systems were altered to not register organic life," Wheeljack added in his usual cheerful manner. "Or else it'd be going off if a bird or even a mouse got too close to the entrance."

"We should change that, then!" Red Alert argued. "If the Decepticons are using animal spies then we must be ready for them!"

Optimus resisted the urge to roll his optics, a rather addicting habit picked up from the humans, as he turned to the one mech in the conference room who hadn't added anything to the conversation. "Well, Ratchet, what do you think? Could our mystery intruder have been a Decepticon spy?"

The CMO didn't answer for a few moments, no doubt mulling over the situation in his processor. "I honestly don't think the 'Cons would have the patience to employ animals, Prime," he finally said. "And I don't think that 'wolf' was after information."

"It went into Prowl's office!" Red Alert sputtered. "And several datapads containing valuable Intel were damaged!"

"Physically damaged, yes. But there were no signs of a hack and none of the datapads are missing," Ratchet countered. "According to Sideswipe, the damage only occurred when the wolf tried to hide in Prowl's office, and that's only because he chased the slagging thing around the entire ship."

"Well if it wasn't after information and none of our security systems are compromised, then I think it's safe to say the animal isn't connected to the Decepticons," Optimus thoughtfully rubbed his chin. "If so, then why would it trek so far into the Ark in the first place?"

Wordlessly, Ratchet unspaced a bundle and placed it in the middle of the conference table. The other gathered 'bots stared curiously at it.

"Human medical supplies?" Wheeljack's head fins light up with surprise. "Wasn't expecting that. Why would a wolf be needing medical supplies?"

"Maybe it's captured a human," Red Alert huffed. "And is holding it hostage."

"Perhaps it would be wise to consult someone with some knowledge of Earth creatures?" Prowl suggested, glancing at Optimus for confirmation.

Optimus nodded. "Very well, bring in Hound. Let's see if he has anything to add."

The tactician stood from the table and exited the conference room. A few moments later he returned, followed by a somewhat nervous looking Hound.

"Glad you could join us Hound, take a seat," Optimus gestured to one of the empty seats around the table. "We were just discussing our mystery guest and I had hoped you'd be able to clear some things up for us."

"I'll be happy to help, Prime," Hound sat down, smiling slightly at the assembled 'bots. "What exactly did you need help with?"

"This," Optimus pointed at the bundle of medical supplies "was apparently left behind by our intruder, which we have identified as a large wolf. Would wolves have any need for human medical supplies?"

The tracker frowned thoughtfully for a few seconds before shaking his head. "I don't think so, and I doubt wolves would even know what this equipment would be used for. Most animals can't recognize the purpose behind man-made objects. If they have the mental capacity to use tools they usually only use sticks and such."

"Curious," Optimus mused. "Then why did it travel so far into the Ark for something it probably couldn't use?"

"Unless it could use it," Red Alert added. "Perhaps it's smarter than the average wolf?"

"Even if it is, what would it use the medical supplies on?" Prowl asked, quirking an optic ridge. "The human hostage theory is, honestly, illogical, particularly since no humans have been reported missing lately in the neighbouring cities."

"Erm..." Hound started, examining the bundle thoughtfully. "I may have come up with a reason as to why this wolf may be after medical supplies. But, if I'm right, it would mean this wolf may be several times smarter than your average canis lupus."

"...So what's your idea?" Wheeljack asked, obviously curious. "It's a larger than normal wolf, perhaps it's smarter than normal too."

"Well, a while ago, some humans apparently shot a large yellow wolf, which sounds suspiciously like our intruder," Hound suggested. "Perhaps that has something to do with the attempted theft of these supplies?"

"This wolf was red, not yellow," Ratchet frowned. "And since Sideswipe couldn't catch it, I'm going to assume it wasn't injured."

"Then why would it travel deep within an alien ship for medical supplies it doesn't even need?" Prowl's optics blinked. "Unless...this wolf, and the one the humans encountered are connected somehow, and..."

The tactician trailed off at that point, not caring to finish his thought. Everyone else in the conference room remained silent as well, considering this new train of thought. To consider that their intruder had been trying to steal supplies for the sake of a different wolf meant considering that these 'wolves' were probably remarkably intelligent. Not only that, but possibly compassionate too.

And Optimus had hoped he was done being disturbed for some time.

oOoOoOo

The forest that night was cool, calm, peaceful. The crisp spring evening air was filled with the singing of night birds and owls and the chatter of mice. Every now and then, the sad, sorrowful song of another wolf could be heard, scaring the forest into silence for a few seconds, and then the nightlife would carry on as usual. Normally, Tash would have found some solace in the familiar sounds. They usually calmed her and helped her settle into sleep. But not tonight.

Tonight, her mind raced as she struggled to get a grip on her current situation and tried to find some way to fix it all. She desperately searched for some way to go back to the way things were, the way things used to be. Before they decided to leave their home in the south and head north, before they found the land with canyons and flat grasslands, before they headed further north still and came upon this place, this paradise of lush forests and mountains and areas of pristine wilderness. Before they had decided they could hide from the humans, before they had ever found that crashed space ship.

Before they had ever known about the giant robots.

She had long ago decided to blame all of it, all their misfortune all their bad luck, on the giant robots. If they had just stayed away, none of this would have happened. If they hadn't crashed on Earth then she and Artemis would never have seen them. Artemis wouldn't have become so interested in the giant metal men. Then maybe he wouldn't have gone off exploring that fateful day.

And then, perhaps, he wouldn't be dieing.

That much Tash was certain of. Since the day he was wounded, Artemis's health had been steadily going downhill. First he couldn't walk properly, and then he gradually lost his appetite. After that, he eventually grew too weak to even stand let alone walk. And now, now he wouldn't even drink water. Just the thought of her younger brother dieing almost drove Tash to a nervous breakdown. For so long they had relied on each other, had been each other's only source of company. The thought of losing that terrified her. The thought of being alone terrified her even more.

The fact that she was now faced with some difficult choices didn't help at all either.

She could leave Artemis here, in the secluded clearing that had become his prison, and travel to either of the less populated poles herself. In his current condition, he would not be able to travel at all, and she didn't want to wait until he passed on before beginning her journey. The longer they stayed in the forest, the more chances they had of being killed by humans or robots. But she did not want Artemis to die, she wanted to save him any way she could.

Getting help from the humans had crossed her mind. They definitely had the equipment and the know how to heal bullet wounds, and there were some good humans out there, she was sure of it. The tricky part would be finding these good humans among all the others who would rather shoot first and ask questions later. Tash didn't think she was lucky enough to attempt such an endeavour.

That left only one choice, the one she had put the most thought into, and the one that scared her the most: return to the ship for help. She knew they had the necessary supplies, and both times she had travelled there, once alone and once with Artemis, she didn't sustain any real damage. The first pair of robots they encountered had only seemed curious, and the second one didn't harm her.

'That's because he was...unarmed,' her voice of reason reprimanded, and the corners of her mouth twitched up in a slight smile at the horrible pun. True, she didn't see how the robot could have hurt her if he wanted to, but it still didn't seem like he had meant any harm. Certainly she had been scared out of her mind but, looking back on it, the robot seemed to have been just as scared as she was.

As much as she hated to admit it, the robots seemed to be the best source of help for Artemis.

And if they did decide to shoot them, well their weapons would surely deliver a quick death.


	8. Help

Spring.

The rainy season.

It brought with it many things, like the constant disgust a fire element shifter usually felt towards water, mud, damp cold that chilled one to the very bone, and something else. Something that Tash found both mystifying and hard to define. Back home, if she could even call it home anymore, she rarely, if ever, experienced rain and often missed the most spectacular property it possessed. The ability to leave the world fresh, rejuvenated, and seemingly untouched. It brought about the most wonderful of smells in the forest. The scent of pine trees and needles tickled her nose, while the heady smells of grasses and ferns left her in a calm and happy mood. And all the while that fresh clean scent would be ever-present and the world would have a timeless feeling to it, like something wonderful and new with all sorts of possibilities just waiting to be explored.

At least, that's how she'd usually feel. Today, however, the rain had a far more morbid feel to it. Instead of spreading a calm feeling of cleanliness and hope, the sky itself seemed to be weeping. The forest around the clearing was silent and still, the animals were deathly quiet, and the only things breaking the suffocating silence were the sounds of rain drops falling from the dreary sky and a dying wolf doggedly taking his last breaths.

Tash huffed and flattened her ears against her head, as though it would help drown out that insufferable noise. It reminded her of a clock, counting down, closer and closer, to the point of no return. She knew that Artemis would most likely be dead in a few days, he may not even live long enough to see tomorrow's end, if he didn't get the help he desperately needed. Though she had already decided that the giant robots were her best bet, she was still extremely leery of visiting them. Her last visit to the ship wasn't very...promising, and she would have to bring Artemis with her this time...somehow... She wasn't even completely certain they would help him. What if they were no different than the humans? Suppose she went there and the both of them were captured? Would they then be used as slaves? Science experiments? Pets for giant, robotic offspring?

But if she were to stay here in, in the clearing with Artemis, things could, potentially, become much worse. The humans could stumble upon their little hiding place, and then they surely would become lab rats, or caged in some perverted human zoo to be ogled at by the masses. Even if the humans didn't find them, Artemis would still die, and she would be left to travel Earth all on her lonesome... That thought alone was more frightening than the notion of slavery or even experimentation. She wouldn't survive very long alone in this drastically changing world, and at the moment, Artemis was all she really had. He was the only thing she had to remind her of home, of what she was, and she wasn't about to let that go easily.

Once again, she found herself on the same thought that led her to consider going to the robots in the first place, that dying by their hand would probably be much faster than dying alone in a polluted wasteland or by some other grotesque fashion the humans could think up. By the time she finally made her decision, the storm had petered out, and the steady drip of water falling from leaves filled the clearing.

She pulled herself to her feet, heedless of the mud that caked her legs and belly, and made her way over to Artemis. The ground was slick and muddy, and she alternated between sinking and slipping in the thick loam. Luckily for them both, Artemis had chosen to rest on a patch of grass, so it should be easier for him to get up.

...If he ever did get up. Tash carefully nudged his head with her nose, lifting it off the ground some, before it fell limply back onto the wet grass. The red wolf reared back in shock, ears flared to pick up any sound, any sign of life from Artemis. Had she been too late? Took too long to make her decision? No. She could still hear him breathing. An unsteady pattern of shallow breaths and noisy huffs. He was alive, but not for long, and he most certainly wouldn't be walking anywhere anytime soon.

So how on Earth was she supposed to get him to the ship?

oOoOoOo

Sideswipe leaned against the wall of the Ark, just inside the cavernous entrance. He stared out into the bleak wilderness, ignoring the steady drips of water that cascaded around the opening like miniature waterfalls. Many Autobots would have been surprised to see the mischievous front-liner so deep in thought, but, at this particular moment, Sideswipe couldn't have cared less. He had a lot of things on his processor.

He was worried.

"It's not often I see you looking so troubled," the warrior jumped slightly as Hound startled him. "What's bugging you?"

Sideswipe glanced over as the tracker leaned against the opposite wall, smiling cordially. Hound was definitely one of the nicer 'bots on the Ark, and he was already ready to lend an ear, or audio in this case, to anyone's troubles. But, more importantly (at least to Sideswipe) he was the most educated 'bot when it came to the local wildlife. Knowledge that the warrior could definitely use at the moment.

Speaking of knowledge...

"I thought you were supposed to be at that conference...thing," Sideswipe carefully avoided Hound's earlier query. "When they were deciding what to do with those wolves."

"I was about to say the same thing to you," Hound quirked an optic ridge. "Surprised I didn't see you there, you were the only witness, after all. As for the conference, it ended pretty quickly."

"Oh?" the Lamborghini fought back his uneasiness. "How'd that go? Did you all decide anything...or...?"

Hound shrugged, optics scanning the hills and patches of forest outside the Ark. "We didn't come up with a solution if that's what you mean. But we've all decided that these wolves are probably smarter than average, and Prime wants us to be cautious if we come into contact with them. The same regulation slag we always hear when dealing with new species," he frowned thoughtfully, picking over his next words carefully. "Honestly, I don't see a need for a 'solution'. If we leave the wolves alone, they'll probably leave us alone. Especially if what I heard about you chasing one of them around the Ark is true. I can't see it coming back here after that traumatizing event."

Sideswipe released an intake of air he didn't realize he was holding. If Hound didn't think the wolf would be back, then it was probably true, and he found that remarkably...relieving. "I didn't want it to get hurt or anything," the warrior sighed. "That definitely wasn't my intention. Though I can't say I regret chasing it into Prowl's office," he smiled fondly at the memory. "But, in all honesty, Hound, what do you think is going to happen to them? The wolves?"

The green mech scratched the back of his helm, deep in thought. "Well...I'm going to be brutally honest with you, Sideswipe, I don't know. From what I've seen, animals who get shot don't survive, not without some form of help. But, in the same breath, these wolves are different from anything else I've seen, so maybe they'll make it." He stood away from the wall, patting the red mech's shoulder as he passed. "Anyway, I have patrol soon. Don't worry too much about those wolves, Sideswipe. Animals can usually take care of themselves."

Sideswipe watched the tracker leave before returning to gazing stoically outside, only far less worried.

oOoOoOo

Tash winced as another vicious crack sounded from Artemis's tail. She apologized through a mouthful of fur, bone, and even some blood before carrying on. Dragging her brother to the ship by his tail probably wasn't the best idea she had, but she couldn't afford to wait for a better one to come along. Besides, any fractures and breaks in his tail would be seamlessly healed once he was patched up.

That was, _if_ he survived long enough to reach the ship.

She crested another hill and dropped Artemis's tail, panting heavily. It was drier up here, and dragging the wolf through the rapidly solidifying mud was becoming more and more of a chore. She also hadn't eaten or drank as much as she probably should have, being too busy worrying about Artemis to care for herself, so she was rapidly growing weaker and weaker from this exhausting work.

But still, she must persevere, for them both.

Face set in grim determination, she picked the limp tail up again, listened patiently for the still-ragged breathing of her brother, and carried on, leaving a shallow trail in the mud behind them.

The trek down the hill was far easier than her journey up its opposite side, and she was allowed a much needed breather. Partway down the slope, she noticed a break in the foliage through which the soft gleaming of gold metal could be seen. They were very close to the ship now, a few more hills, a couple miles, and her arduous adventure would finally come to an end. She looked forward to it with a mix of relief and dread. Several outcomes had played through her mind during her hike, each of them plaguing her with doubts and uncertainties. She could be wandering into a death trap. They both could get killed on sight, or captured, or sold out to humans, or even simply ignored. There was no guarantee the robots would do anything to help them. Perhaps they were even afraid of the two wolves. They may even run from Tash, ignoring her pleas for assistance. But, there was also the smallest chance that things may actually go according to plan. That they would help Artemis, and let the wolves go on their way and she and Artemis would retreat to either of the poles and never be seen or heard from again.

She frowned distastefully at that. Surely, there had to be more to life than just hiding. She wanted so much not to leave this place, this land of wide expanses of plains and lush forests and deep canyons. She hated the thought of hiding out in some frozen wastes, scavenging off of other frozen, starving critters for sustenance. Such is the life of an exile, though. Beggars can't be choosers, and if she wanted her and Artemis to live for any amount of time, living as far away from civilization as possible would be their best bet.

Besides, she was rather fond of snow cones.

oOoOoOo

At first, Sideswipe wasn't sure if his optics were functioning properly. The red and yellow blobs approaching the Ark seemed so out of place against the backdrop of green and brown that were the trees and hills. Upon closer inspection, however, he realized that the two blobs were indeed real and that they were actually a pair or four-legged organics. The red one seemed to be dragging the larger yellow one by its...what do the squishies call it again? ...Tail? The red organic seemed to be having a hell of a time pulling the other as well, and Sideswipe couldn't figure out why it wanted to do such a thing. Perhaps it was some sort of sport? A game played by organics? But then why would the yellow one be lying so still? Limply, almost. What kind of organics where they anyway? The red one seemed familiar somehow...

He was certain his fuel pump would stop when he remembered where exactly he'd seen that particular organic.

The wolf had returned. And it had brought along a friend.

oOoOoOo

Ratchet scowled angrily as he ignored the ping over his comm. It could wait, at least until he finished patching up Cliffjumper.

His scowl slowly transformed into a full-blown, narrow-optic'd snarl as another ping echoed over his comm. He had thought it would be common sense that if he didn't answer his comm. he was probably busy. But he knew that there was at least one mech on the Ark to whom common sense wasn't very friendly to.

"What the Pit do you want, Sideswipe?" he growled into his comm. "Isn't it obvious I'm busy-"

::But, Ratchet!:: Sideswipe whined. ::This is important!::

"Important, eh?" the medic fixed the opposite wall with a death glare as Cliffjumper cautiously edged off the berth and out of harm's way. "Exactly how is this more 'important' than my work?"

::The wolf came back!:: the warrior exclaimed excitedly. ::Only, it has another wolf with it. And I think the other one's...well, it looks like it's dying, Ratchet.::

Ratchet nodded curtly at Cliffjumper, giving the minibot permission to leave. "Where is it?" he asked.

::Just outside the entrance,:: Sideswipe replied. ::You'd better hurry though. I don't think it's going to last long.::

oOoOoOo

Tash honestly didn't think she'd make it quite this far.

She stood just outside the ship's enormous entrance, feeling rather awkward and out of place. She recognized the red robot inside the entrance as the one that had chased her, though this time he (she assumed it was a he) had both arms. There were no other robots in sight, though Mr. Red seemed to be talking to someone, so perhaps more would be coming. She certainly hoped so. He hadn't dragged Artemis's sorry hide across the mountain just to be gawked at like some side show.

Sure enough another robot emerged from within the belly of the ship. Tash recognized him as the robot with the box of medical supplies she saw at the fight, and felt a bit more hopeful. However, the white robot walked a bit too fast for her liking, and it sped up even more when it noticed Artemis. Instinctively, she growled, baring her fangs and taking a defensive stance, and the robot stopped at the entrance, clearly startled.

Tash wilted, drawing back, ears flattened in shame. She had blown it, she was sure of it. She had threatened the only person/robot/thing that stood a chance at saving her brother. Surely it wouldn't help them now. It would sound the alarm, calling it's other robot brethren together and they would flood out of the ship like some wave of righteous death and send both wolves to an early grave.

Only...only that didn't happen. The red robot said something to the white one, Tash caught the words 'afraid' and 'careful', before the white robot nodded, those blue lights in its face seemed focused on her, and it started slowly, cautiously ahead. Tash took a few hesitant steps back, fighting the instinct to defend her brother as the robot drew closer. It knelt before the yellow-gold wolf, and she watched as it carefully scooped up Artemis, handling the large animal with far more ease than she had expected. It stood, making sure to keep its movements slow and steady, before retreating into the ship. Tash followed, keeping an eye on the retreating form of her brother. She stopped just inside the entrance though, uncertain if she should venture deeper inside. She didn't belong there, after all, among the land of giant alien robots .

"Well, aren't you coming in?" her head snapped up and to the right as the voice startled her. She had forgotten that the red robot was still there, and it stared down at her in a mixture of apprehension and confusion, the same face anyone else would wear if they found themselves talking to a wolf. "Ratchet usually let's us wait outside the MedBay, I don't see why it should be any different for you..." he finished lamely, obviously inexperienced when it came to having one-sided conversations with wildlife. "If you...you know...do decide to come in, follow me, okay? And...don't go anywhere I guess..."

Tash watched as the red robot walked deeper into the ship, before following carefully in it's footsteps (those _are_ feet, right?). She took one last look at the world outside, with its fresh smells and its feeling of being new. The sun was hovering just above the horizon and the sky had turned a deep shade of amber with clouds spread out like tongues of flame. She drank it all in, memorizing her world as this could very well be the last she'll ever see of it, before turning back to the red/gold interior of the ship, with its strange smells and inhabitants. And she followed the red robot into the still unfamiliar environment that was the _Ark_.


End file.
